Water damage to condominium

pattiann01March 26, 2010

My mom owns a condo and the foundation outside her next door neighbors unit is cracked. With all the recent rain, the neighbors unit got flooded, and the water seeped underneath the adjacent wall and got into my mom's unit causing some water damage. I know that foundations are normally not covered, but who is responsible? The association or the neighbor? Since the water came into the neighbor's unit from outside, wouldn't it be the associations policy that would cover this? The association says they are not responsible, the neighbor says she is not..my mom is in the middle of it and just wants her damage fixed and paid for!!!!

A lawyer and a good reading of the condo regulations. It's probably covered in the fine print somewhere, but it will most likely take a good lawyer to find out exactly who is responsible, if anyone.

Be prepared that your mother may indeed have to pay for the damage. It really depends on how the regulations are worded. Water damage is not always covered. Insurance policies don't cover flooding in many cases--water damage, especially flooding, is an issue unto itself and the typical rules of responsibility don't always apply.

Now, if someone could prove that the association had been negligent in fixing the cracked foundation, that might give your mother some leverage.